


Something About The Sunshine

by bazerella



Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Exy (All For The Game), Explicit Language, basically the movie starstruck, neil is christopher wild, no literally its just starstruck but andrew and neil
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-26
Updated: 2020-08-04
Packaged: 2021-03-06 04:42:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 19,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25537522
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bazerella/pseuds/bazerella
Summary: “Oh, fuck.”“Ow.” Andrew raised his hand up to his head. He didn’t feel any blood so that had to be a good sign. He looked up to meet the culprit who probably concussed him.There was no blood but Andrew was definitely hallucinating.“Hey,” Andrew said. “You’re--”“Sh!” Neil Josten just fucking shushed him. “Here let me help you.”
Relationships: Neil Josten/Andrew Minyard
Comments: 66
Kudos: 224





	1. One

**Author's Note:**

> Come say hi on twitter @ bazerella :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own any of these characters! All characters belong to Nora and all song and movie references belong to Disney and the movie StarStruck!!

Andrew’s right leg was bouncing up and down as he sat in the crappy plastic airport chair. He had sent his cousin, Nicky, and his brother, Aaron, to go get him snacks for the plane ride. He thought that maybe, just  _ maybe _ if he stuffed his face for the entirety of the seven hour plane ride he would forget about the fact that he was miles and miles away from the safety of the ground. 

His bouncing leg was halted, briefly, by a pack of peanut butter M&M’s being thrown at him. 

“Here.” Aaron sat down in the seat next to him, seemingly uncaring about the fact that they were all about to trust a giant hunk of metal to get them to California. 

“Does Wymack have a car? Do you think he’ll let us use it?” Nicky sat in the seat that was across from Andrew. He was armed with various gossip magazines and a Dr. Pepper. 

“And why do you need a car?” Betsy Dobson asked. Betsy handed Andrew another chocolate bar as she sat down next to him and in that moment he was very grateful for his adopted mother. 

Betsy had adopted Andrew and Aaron when they were five years old, and then had taken Nicky in when they were seven. Nicky was three years older than them and at the time Andrew thought Nicky was the coolest person to ever exist. Granted when Andrew had met Nicky, Nicky was ten and to Andrew anyone who was already in their double digits was cool. Andrew secretly still thought Nicky was one of the coolest people he ever met and looked up to the older boy a lot but Andrew was also at the stage of his life where he’d rather eat glass than admit that. 

“To stalk celebrities,” Nicky said, plainly. “Aaron wants to stalk celebrities too.” 

“Celebrity,” Aaron corrected. “Singular.” 

“Ah,” Betsy said, very understandingly. “The redhead from the music video?” 

“He has more than one video. Nicky, wait, that last magazine you just had has him on the cover. Give it here.” 

Nicky handed Aaron a teen magazine which Aaron then handed out to Betsy. Since Andrew was seated in between the two he got a perfect front row view of Neil Josten. 

Neil Josten was a blue eyed dream of a singer. He had various hit songs that were popular enough for the radio. Aaron had a long time man-crush on the boy and was determined to meet him while they were in California for spring break. Andrew could admit that objectively Neil Josten was very attractive. The boy was nice to look at and maybe Andrew listened to his songs every now and then when he was alone. Maybe Andrew browsed through his instagram every now and then. But Andrew wasn’t  _ obsessed _ with Neil Josten. He didn’t hold him to a higher degree of humanity just because he was a little famous. Andrew didn’t know Neil Josten. 

Andrew did not know Neil Josten, personally, so it seemed ridiculous and silly to him that this boy had such an intense fanbase who act like he created music. 

“Katelyn said she would consider going to the dance with me if I brought her back something signed by Neil Josten,” Aaron said.  _ Sure,  _ Andrew thought,  _ for Katelyn.  _

Andrew found it quite convenient that the girl Aaron was pining after was interested in Aaron’s favorite singer. 

“Well I’m sure if you ask, Abby or David will let you use one of their vehicles. You know I think Kevin may have a car now. You all could scope out celebrities together!” Betsy suggested. 

Andrew rolled his eyes at the mention of Kevin’s name. The whole point of this spring break trip was so that Betsy could see her college best friends Abby Winfield and David Wymack. They’re not actually married as far as Andrew knows but they might as well be. Kevin Day is David’s kid from another woman but Abby doesn’t seem to mind. Andrew has known Kevin for about ten years which means they both hit puberty around the same time although Kevin’s one year older. Kevin Day was also Andrew’s sexual awakening for figuring out that he likes boys instead of girls. Andrew did not like Kevin Day. 

Normally Kevin comes to South Carolina with Abby and David for a month in the summer but for some unknown reason Betsy offered to come visit them for once during spring break, hence why Andrew was currently about to fly across the continent. Andrew didn’t think Kevin Day was worth it. 

“I’ll pass,” Andrew said. 

“You’re no fun,” Aaron pouted. 

Just then their flight number was called. Andrew dragged his feet all through the terminal and into his seat. He refused to sit by the window because who the hell wanted to look at that view? He uncharacteristically placed himself in between Nicky and Aaron while Betsy sat in the row across from them in an aisle with two strangers. 

“You okay?” Nicky nudged his arm. Andrew nodded but closed his eyes as tight as possible when the plane began to move. 

On the incline he felt Aaron place his head gently on Andrew’s shoulder and Andrew felt himself lose some of the tension he’d been holding in his body. Andrew felt Nicky’s arm brush against his when Nicky opened a magazine but Andrew had other plans. He moved his hand around with his eyes still shut and eventually found Nicky’s hand. He gripped it lightly at first and then increased the pressure along with the plane’s altitude but Nicky didn’t seem to mind. 

When the plane reached its cruising altitude Andrew opened his eyes. He let Nicky’s hand out of his death grip and he was thankful that Nicky just went back to his magazine like nothing happened. 

Aaron lifted his head and then held out an earbud to Andrew, “Wanna share?” 

“Sure.” 

Andrew put the earbud in and rested his head back, closing his eyes again. To no one’s surprise, Neil Josten’s voice flooded his eardrums. 

**_Starstruck!_ **

**_Designer sunglasses_ **

**_Livin the dream as a teen_ **

**_All the fancy cars_ **

**_Hollywood Boulevard_ **

**_Heard the crowd calling your name, yeah_ **

He let Neil’s voice carry him to California.


	2. Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now in California, Aaron, Nicky and Andrew figure out the best way to try and meet Neil Josten with the help of Kevin Day.

Andrew got out of the taxi and stared up at the house that was to be his home for the next six days. It was a simple raised ranch style house. Abby came running out of the house and hugged Betsy like they hadn’t seen each other in years instead of the few months they actually hadn’t seen each other. 

“David! Come get their bags and bring them inside,” Abby ordered. “Tell Kevin to come out and have some manners, too!” 

David dragged himself out of the doorway and to the taxi to collect a few of their bags. Andrew carried his own because he did not need anyone to help him with one suitcase; he wasn’t a child. Kevin finally came out of his room when everything was already piled into the living room. 

“Oh, I was just about to come help,” Kevin said. 

“Convenient,” David deadpanned. 

“So!” Abby said. “We have a pullout in the basement that I figure the twins could use, Betsy can stay in the guest room and then Nicky you could share with Kevin or there’s a recliner in the basement?” 

Nicky shrugged. “Recliner’s fine.” 

Andrew gave his cousin a look. Kevin wasn’t homophobic or anything so he couldn’t figure out why Nicky would rather sleep in an uncomfortable recliner than share a queen sized bed with Kevin. 

“Alright,” Abby said. “Well if you change your mind throughout the week Kevin’s room is still available.” 

“Thanks,” Nicky grabbed his own suitcase and started for the stairs to the basement. Andrew and Aaron followed. 

The previously mentioned recliner, to put it lightly, looked like a piece of junk. Like someone saw it outside or near a dumpster and took pity on it and then brought it into a home. 

“Really?” Andrew asked. “You’d rather sleep on this than share a bed with Kevin?” 

“I want to spend the week with my cousins, not Kevin,” Nicky said. 

“You live with us. We’re going to be hanging out all week, anyway. You don’t have to suffer on uncomfortable furniture,” Aaron pointed out. 

“I just want to spend as much time with you two as I can! Jeez! Sorry I’m just trying to be close to my family!” 

Andrew and Aaron shared a look. It wasn’t like Nicky to get snappy at anyone, but especially at them. Nicky was always the cool and collected one.

“What’s going on?” Andrew asked straight to the point. “What aren’t you telling us?” 

Nicky surrendered easily. “Fine. I’m going to Germany this summer. Part of this study abroad program at Palmetto State. I have the option to stay there for the whole school year if I want, but right now I’m just signed up for the summer.” 

Nicky was a freshman at Palmetto State University. It was where Betsy worked as a therapist for the athletes on campus, though they lived in Columbia. Nicky commuted back and forth with Betsy so Andrew never really felt like Nicky was gone. But now, Nicky’s saying he’s going to a whole other country and if he likes it enough he can stay there for a year. 

“Oh.” Aaron was the first to speak. 

“I don’t know if I’m staying past the summer. I just wanted to make sure I spend as much time as possible with the two of you just in case I decide to stay,” Nicky explained. 

“That’s stupid,” Andrew said. 

“Andrew!” Aaron barked out. 

“There’s still three months until summer. We’re going to be hanging out all week stalking celebrities and then when we get home we’ll do more stuff together. Don’t fuck up your back on this shitty recliner and then mess up any future plans we make. Go sleep in Kevin’s room.” After a moment Andrew added, “We have time. You’re not leaving yet.” 

“Alright, alright,” Nicky seemed a bit choked up so Andrew went back to unpacking his suitcase. “Come up when you both are done. We’ll make our plan of how we’re going to find Neil Josten.” 

Nicky left Andrew and Aaron to unpack. After a few minutes of silence, Aaron spoke. 

“I never thought I’d say this, but I’m going to miss Nicky. Are you?” 

Andrew gave his twin a scathing look. “Obviously.” 

Aaron hummed. “We’ll still have each other.” 

“Obviously,” Andrew said again. 

“Okay. I’m done. Let’s go upstairs now. I think I know how we’re going to find Neil Josten.” 

“Oh, goodie.” Andrew followed Aaron up the stairs. They passed Abby and Betsy who seemed to already be halfway done with a bottle of wine and then David who was sitting on the couch watching television. They didn’t bother knocking and barged right into Kevin’s room. 

Kevin and Nicky were both sitting on the floor browsing various magazines. 

“I clued Kevin in already on Operation Blue Eyes,” Nicky explained. “That’s what we’re calling this by the way. Because of Neil’s eyes. So blue, wow.” 

“Yeah, we got that.” Andrew sat next to Nicky. 

Aaron sat next to Kevin and was flipping through his phone, “Okay, so all the fan accounts say that tonight is Allison Reynolds’ birthday. She’s having a party at a club called The Foxhole. Neil will probably be there.” 

“Is that his girlfriend?” Nicky asked. 

“I don’t think so,” Aaron said. “They started getting photographed a lot after rumors started that Allison was dating some famous stunt performer. Renee Walker? I think it’s just a cover. But that guarantees that Neil will be at her birthday party.” 

“Okay. So how do we get into The Foxhole?” Nicky asked. 

“I can help with that,” Kevin said, speaking for the first time. “My friend Jeremy has connections. I can probably get you in there.” 

“You’re not going with us?” Aaron asked. 

“Nah. I’m hanging out with Thea tonight but I’m good for tomorrow. She lives close so you guys can use my car. I can walk.” 

“Cool,” Nicky said. “Okay, we need outfits. Luckily I packed some club wear just in case. We’ll get ready after dinner. Kevin, call your friend and get us in.” 

Kevin moved to get his phone, leaving Nicky, Aaron, and Andrew to browse more magazines. Aaron and Nicky started talking about other celebrity gossip, Aaron insisting he only knew as much as he did because of Katelyn.  _ Likely story _ , Andrew thought. 

Andrew kept his eye on one magazine. It was an old, clearly worn out Teen Vogue. Neil Josten posed on the cover. His head was tilted, and one of his eyebrows was arched, almost as if baiting the viewer to say something. Neil Josten half looked like a stereotypical Hollywood pretty boy, but also looked like he could gut you with his bare hands. Andrew was enticed. 

But no.  _ No.  _ Andrew didn’t  _ know  _ Neil Josten. So he wasn’t going to dedicate his life to a fantasy boy that didn’t know he existed. 

Abby called out for dinner and the four boys gathered themselves around the table. Nicky and Aaron answered all the polite small talk questions like ‘How is school?’, ‘Any summer plans?’, and ‘Do you have a job?’. Andrew put a spoonful of mashed potatoes into his mouth every time he felt like a question was going to be directed toward him. 

After dinner Nicky began throwing various clothing at Andrew and Aaron to get them all ready for their club excursion. 

“Okay,” Kevin said. “Jeremy said he got your names on the list. He could only get two names though, so I just told him to put down Aaron and Nicky since I figured you weren’t really into this.” He addressed Andrew at the last part. 

“I’ll watch the car,” Andrew shrugged. 

“Perfect. Okay, Aaron, come here, your hair’s a mess,” Nicky reached a hand to fix Aaron’s hair while Aaron just stood there pouting. 

“I’ll see you guys later. Good luck!” Kevin tossed Nicky the keys to his car. 

Nicky, Aaron and Andrew all piled into the car. Nicky in the driver's seat, Andrew in the passenger seat and Aaron in the back. 

“This is going to be so great. I can’t wait,” Nicky squealed as he pulled onto the street. “We’re going to meet Neil Josten! Do you think Matt Boyd will be there? Actually, don’t answer that. I want to be surprised!” 

Andrew rolled his eyes and leaned his head against the window. He didn’t want to be a buzzkill, but honestly? What were the chances of actually meeting Neil Josten. He was a famous singer and he had famous friends. Andrew didn’t think he would bother with people who were normal. 

  
As the car pulled up to the venue, the orange neon letters that spelled out The Foxhole lit up the whole street.  _ No way _ , Andrew thought. There was no way they were going to meet Neil Josten. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the first few chapter are short but overall this fic is like 20k


	3. Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Andrew meets Neil Josten

“Neil, this is serious. Moriyama Productions wants you to be in their next big movie but they’re not a fan of you always mouthing off to the paparazzi.” 

“Well maybe the paparazzi should fuck off?” Neil crunched on a carrot stick and fiddled on his phone, blatantly ignoring the concerns his uncle--No, his  _ manager- _ \- was giving him. 

“Listen.” Neil’s Uncle Stuart was not a bad guy. He just didn’t really know how to be an uncle, so instead he threw himself into the managerial role of Neil’s career. “Kengo Moriyama is sending his two sons over tonight for the party. The youngest son, Riko, is a fan. He’s a  _ big _ fan of yours. You sing him a song, make him happy so he tells his dad you’re good and the movie deal is yours. You can lock yourself in your room for the rest of the night for all I care after you make an appearance. You can’t afford to screw this up.” 

“Fine, fine. Whatever. I’ll see you tonight, then,” Neil said. 

“I mean it, Neil. No mishaps with the paparazzi.” 

Neil didn’t reply. Instead he left the room with his carrot sticks and went to his backyard. Already sitting in their token lounge chairs was his two best friends, Matt Boyd and Dan Wilds. 

“What’s up?” Matt asked when he noticed Neil. 

Neil sat in his own lounge chair, “Stuart said no paparazzi mishaps so I guess Allison’s birthday party is a no go.” 

“You know,” Dan said, “You could always hold your tongue when they get the cameras in your face. This may come as a shock to you but you don’t always have to take the bait.” 

“What’s the fun in that?” Neil smirked. “But no, seriously, Stuart says this movie could be a big deal and I don’t actually want to fuck it up. But I also don’t want to let Allison down. So...thoughts?” 

“I got it!” Matt stood up. He positioned himself in front of Neil and Dan as though he was addressing a class. “The Foxhole has a back door. We’ll go in through the front and then open the back from inside to sneak you in. That way the paps won’t see you.”

“Allison will be mad we didn’t get a photo op,” Neil reasoned. 

“Allison will have to deal with it! There’s enough photos of the two of you together anyway. Everyone thinks you're dating. She got what she wanted,” Dan said. 

“Come on, Neil! You want to stay stuck in your house and then perform for that spoiled Moriyama fuck? Or do you want to get out of here and sing for Allison?” 

“Alright,” Neil conceded. “But I’m only staying to sing one song to Alli and then I’m leaving.” 

“Deal.” Matt and Dan smiled at each other. 

_ Just one song _ , Neil thought. How much trouble could he get in? 

***

Andrew was getting increasingly more annoyed as time went on. When Aaron and Nicky had spotted a crowd of paparazzi getting their cameras ready they jumped out of the car and ran toward the entrance of the club. To the paparazzi’s dismay and Andrew was sure of Aaron and Nicky’s dismay, the only people who got out of the limousine were Matt Boyd and Dan Wilds. No Neil Josten. 

No Neil Josten and yet it had been thirty minutes since Aaron and Nicky had gotten into the club. The whole point of this trip was to try and get an autograph from Neil Josten so if Neil Josten wasn’t in the club, what the fuck was taking so long? Andrew figured Nicky was probably trying to flirt with B list teen celebrities and Aaron was trying to get him back outside with no success. 

Andrew huffed and muttered to himself how stupid this entire idea had been from the beginning. Going to a club in a city they don’t know to try and get a celebrity to write his name on a piece of paper. And not to mention the fact that Kevin hadn’t even been able to get  _ his _ name on the list so only Aaron and Nicky got in the club? Bullshit at its finest. Maybe Andrew wouldn’t be so miserable if he got to go in but no! He just had to sit in the hideous ass car that Kevin drove. Andrew didn’t even want to get started on this car. Abby and David must’ve literally gone dumpster diving and found the crappy recliner in their basement and this piece of shit car in the same alley. 

The car was a disgusting shade of mustard yellow and had rust all along the bottom. Nicky hadn’t even left Andrew with the keys so it’s not like he could listen to music to pass the time. Andrew had enough. 

He stepped out of the car and took a breath of the polluted city air. He stretched his legs out and then looked over at the orange lights of the club. Fuck it. He would just drag Nicky and Aaron out himself. Andrew didn’t particularly want to wait in the long line of assholes waiting to get into the club so he walked around to the side of the club to see if there was another entrance. 

When he got to the back door he saw a single door that had a fox paw print spray painted on it. Andrew walked toward the door and hoped that it was unlocked and that he wouldn’t have to stray toward more illegal methods to get the door open. 

He reached out to grab the handle but before he could grip it, the door swung open, slamming straight into his head and forcing him to fall back onto the ground. 

***

Apparently Neil could get in a lot of trouble with just one song. Neil had waited in the back alley of The Foxhole for Matt and Dan to open the door. It went really well at first. 

Matt went on stage and introduced Neil to the crowd. He went up and sang one of his songs. 

**_No you can't see me_ **

**_No you can't meet me_ **

**_Yeah I'm on my game_ **

**_That's right I'm in my shades_ **

**_See the cameras flashing_ **

**_Anybody, any time for action_ **

**_You're the main attraction_ **

**_Hey, in my shades_ **

After singing Neil gave Allison a birthday shoutout. Backstage he posed for a picture with Allison that had her kissing his cheek. It was posted on her Instagram before he even left the building. He had Matt go out first to bring his car to the back door so he could get out without anyone noticing. Luckily the paparazzi stayed in the front when he first arrived. So far he was abiding by Uncle Stuart’s wish to avoid causing a scene. 

Neil should’ve known he would find some other way to fuck it all up. 

“It’s been five minutes,” Dan had said. “Matt should be close now with the car if you want to go now.” 

Neil should have just fucking waited for Matt to call him that the car was close. But no. Instead he pushed the door out, ready to make a run for it. He barely noticed that the door had slammed open into someone. 

He didn’t even realize he just practically assaulted someone with a door until he saw a head of blonde hair fall to the ground. 

***

“Oh, fuck.” 

“Ow.” Andrew raised his hand up to his head. He didn’t feel any blood so that had to be a good sign. He looked up to meet the culprit who probably concussed him. 

There was no blood but Andrew was definitely hallucinating. 

“Hey,” Andrew said. “You’re--” 

“Sh!” Neil Josten just fucking shushed him. “Here let me help you.” 

Andrew accepted Neil Josten’s hand to pull him up. Andrew was a bit unsteady on his feet but he was able to turn when he heard the motor of a car pull up behind him. 

“What the hell happened?” 

“I opened a door on him,” Neil Josten explained to the mystery man. “Fuck. Here, come on let’s get you into the car.” 

Andrew allowed himself to be placed into the passenger seat of a red sports car. His vision cleared a bit and he looked up at the two men that were talking in hushed tones outside of the car. He recognized the second man to be Neil Josten’s tall and built best friend Matt Boyd. He was the one Nicky was obsessed with.  _ Fuck,  _ Andrew remembered,  _ Nicky and Aaron.  _ “What about Nicky and Aaron?” 

“Who?” Neil Josten turned to face him like he forgot Andrew was even there. 

“My brother and cousin. They’re in the club.” 

“Matt will let them know where you are. How did you all get here?” 

Andrew told Neil Josten the car that they had arrived in and listened as he instructed his own friend to stand guard by the car to let Andrew’s family know what happened.  _ Must be nice _ , Andrew thought. To have a friend who’s also basically your assistant who does whatever you want no questions asked. 

“I don’t feel good,” Andrew said out loud. 

Matt was leaning on the car door that was still open but Neil Josten must’ve recognized something in Andrew’s face because he took a pointed step back and got out of the danger zone when Andrew leaned over and puked. Matt’s shoes were not so lucky. 

“Oh, no, not the shoes!” Matt cried. 

Neil Josten looked apologetic. “I’ll buy you new ones. Just go tell his family I’m taking him to see if he’s concussed.” 

Andrew sat back up as Matt closed the door and Neil Josten got into the passenger seat. 

“Seatbelt,” Neil Josten instructed. He looked contemplative and Andrew wanted to smack the look right off his face. How was this even possible? How did he end up here? “What’s your name?” 

“Andrew,” Andrew replied unhappily. 

“Well,” Neil Josten laughed. It was a good laugh. Andrew hated it. “It’s nice to meet you, Andrew.” 

“I can think of nicer things,” Andrew grumbled. 

Neil Josten looked slightly shocked. Andrew smirked at thinking that Neil Josten probably never had anyone not give a fuck about meeting him before. 

Andrew thought this whole trip to California was going to be stupid and pointless but now he had gained something from it. Andrew Minyard got to make a celebrity feel like a nobody and if nothing else exciting happened on this trip, that would be enough. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> shades is my least favorite song in the movie but that's okay


	4. Four

Andrew followed the doctor’s flashlight with his eyes. 

“Well, everything looks normal to me.” 

The curtain that was separating Andrew from the waiting area was ripped open, revealing Neil Josten’s stupid face. “So he’s okay?” 

“Get out,” The doctor said. The curtain closed. “No sign of head trauma so it’s safe to say no concussion.” 

Andrew hummed. “Why’d I throw up?” 

The doctor shrugged, “Probably a side effect of meeting that asshole.” 

The curtain ripped open again, “I can hear you, Jean. It’s a curtain not a wall.” 

“No you can’t. Now go.” 

“You two know each other?” Andrew asked in disbelief. 

Neil Josten shrugged. “He’s a friend of the family.” 

Andrew rolled his eyes. Of course Neil Josten took him to a doctor he had in the back of his pocket. “So can I go now?” 

“Yes,” Jean said. Neil Josten still had his big head in the makeshift room. “But I want you to ice the bump until you get home. I’ll be right back.” 

Jean left and pushed Neil Josten out of the room. Andrew wondered if his friends just called him ‘Neil’. ‘Neil Josten’ was a big name. It was a famous name. It seemed ridiculous to even consider the boy as just ‘Neil’. 

Andrew eavesdropped on the conversation happening right outside his room because as Neil Josten pointed out, it was a curtain not a wall. Andrew listened as Jean told Neil Josten that the paparazzi were waiting outside for him and then as the two traded cars. 

A fucking sports-car for some shitty, broken Honda civic. Truly, a car of celebrity status. 

***

Andrew seemed pissed off, Neil noticed. Neil couldn’t blame him. The boy got hit in the head and then Neil had mentioned that he needed to make a quick pit stop before taking him home. 

It wasn’t that Neil didn’t feel bad about ruining the boy’s night, but he made a promise to Uncle Stuart and the Moriyama’s and he needed to follow through on it or he’d never hear the end of it. 

Neil drove, stealthily down the streets of L.A. Jean had been right, this car really was a piece of shit. Andrew finally snapped the second time the engine backfired. “Are you sure this is safe?” 

“I’m pretty sure!” Neil said but the engine just backfired again. 

“I’m not so sure it is!” Andrew yelled. 

“Can you calm down, maybe?” 

“No! I don’t want to calm down. I want to go home.” 

“I’ll take you home!” Neil promised. “Just...a quick stop first okay?” 

“Whatever.”

The rest of the ride was silent. Neil pulled into his driveway of his mansion. He heard Andrew scoff as the house came into view. 

Andrew offered an “of course you live here” that Neil pointedly ignored. He snuck the two of them into the house and rushed Andrew up the stairs and into a spare room. 

“Is this where you’re hiding me?” Andrew asked. 

“I’m not hiding you,” Neil said, maybe a bit too defensively. “I just don’t want these particular people to see you right now and trust me, neither do you.” 

“I think I can make my own decisions on who does or doesn’t see me,” Andrew said. 

“Okay fine,” Neil said. “Let’s go back downstairs then. I’ll point all questions to you. What are you doing here? How did you meet? Are you two dating?” 

“Dating?” Andrew was incredulous. 

“Yeah. They make shit up. So are you good here or do you want to face the vultures?” 

Andrew rolled his eyes but took a seat in one of the cushioned chairs in the room. Neil took that as a sign he had won. 

“Okay,” Neil said. “I’ll be back. Just...stay.” 

Android glared at him. “Woof.” 

Neil ran back down the stairs and out to the back patio. There were tons of fake people all dressed up making themselves look and seem more important than they really were. Neil felt for the catering staff that were making rounds with glasses of champagne and snacks. He couldn’t imagine the current company were very friendly. 

He ran into Uncle Stuart near the pool. He was talking to a Japanese man with long black hair that was tied back in a ponytail. He had on a perfectly tailored purple suit and was being shadowed by a younger and shorter boy.

“Ah, Neil!” Uncle Stuart clapped him on the back. “Meet Ichirou Moriyama and his brother Riko.”

“Nice to meet you.” Neil shook Ichirou’s hand and then Riko’s. He tried to ignore the almost predatory gaze Riko was giving him. He’d met younger fans before that idolized him but this seemed next level. Neil wouldn’t be surprised if this kid had a shrine for him back home. 

“Will you sing a song?” Riko asked in an innocent voice that was so fake Neil knew it had to be practiced. 

“Of course,”  _ For the movie deal,  _ Neil reminded himself.

Neil grabbed his acoustic guitar and a stool and set up in the middle of the party. 

“Hi, everyone. I’m Neil,” He introduced himself. “This is a song I’ve been working on. Let me know what you think.” 

***

Andrew moved from his chair to the balcony the second he heard guitar strings being plucked. The balcony was high enough that he didn’t think he’d be noticed by all the cheap fuckheads below. 

Andrew was mesmerized by Neil Josten’s fingers strumming along the strings. Neil Josten started singing and Andrew almost lost it. 

**_I can't read your mind like a billboard sign_ **

**_And tell you everything you wanna hear, but_ **

It was so different from what Andrew’s heard on the radio before. So different from what could be streamed or what was popular. Neil Josten’s voice wasn’t overpowered by autotune or edgy pop beats. Acoustic Neil Josten was pure at its core. It was silvery and smooth and Andrew felt his heart doing something it shouldn’t be doing. 

To make matters worse, it was like Neil Josten had a sixth sense. He looked up right to where Andrew was standing and smirked at him before continuing the next verse. 

**_I'll be your hero_ **

**_I, I can be everything you need_ **

**_If you're the one for me_ **

**_Like gravity, I will be unstoppable_ **

**_I, yeah I believe in destiny_ **

**_I may be an ordinary guy without his soul_ **

**_But if you're the one for me_ **

**_Then I'll be your hero_ **

**_Hero_ **

Neil strummed the last chord and applause surrounded him. Andrew stormed back into the room and tried to control his heart. 

This was the problem with celebrities. They got applauded for doing the most basic shit. So what he could sing and play the guitar? So could a lot of people and they’d never have half of what Neil Josten had. Neil’s lyrics had punched Andrew’s soul but it didn’t matter. In a few weeks or months that song would be released and every Neil Josten fan would cry and convince themselves that he was speaking to them. 

Andrew would not be one of them. 

***

When Neil looked up again, Andrew was no longer standing on the balcony. He said a quick goodbye to his uncle and the Moriyama’s and then raced into the house. 

Neil found Andrew in the garage walking in between the black Maserati and the orange Camaro. 

“Hey!” Neil said. “Where are you going?” 

“Anywhere but here.” 

And Neil’s the one with the attitude problem? Neil wondered if Uncle Stuart would go easier on him if he got the pleasure of meeting Andrew. “What did I do now?” 

“You said you’d take me home,” Andrew reminded him. “When?” 

“Just pick a car,” Neil moved his hand in a presenter motion to indicate to the cars in the garage. 

“No.” 

_ Jesus Fuck.  _ “Okay,” Neil said plainly. “We can walk then? We’ll have you home in the next three days at least.” 

Andrew glared at him. “Okay. But I have rules.” 

“Rules?” Neil asked. 

“Rules,” Andrew confirmed. “You drive me straight there and drop me off. Then you can go back to the fabulous life of Neil Josten and we can both pretend this never happened.” 

Neil raised his hands in mock surrender and then moved to open the passenger door to the orange Camaro. Andrew just glared at him harder and then opened the passenger door to the black Maserati instead. 

_ Un-fucking-believable.  _ “What was the point of that? Why does he do this?” Neil wondered aloud but entirely to himself. 

When Neil pulled out of the garage he was still in such disbelief that a boy so small could hold so much attitude he didn’t notice the black paparazzi van start to follow them. 

Neil tried to ease some of the tension in the car by putting the radio on. He laughed as the beginning lyrics to his song started playing. 

“ **_There’s something about the sunshine, baby, I’m seeing you in a whole new light.._ ** ” Neil sang. 

“Really?” Andrew barked out. “No, really?” 

Neil stopped singing. “What? I thought you’d enjoy that.” 

Andrew laughed but it was clear he didn’t find the situation funny. “Oh of course. It’s a fan’s dream come true! I’m sitting in a car with Neil Josten because he knocked me out with a door but it’s okay because he’s singing me his song!” 

Andrew was full of snark and sarcasm. “Too bad I’m not your fan.” 

“You don’t like my music?” Neil ignored the feeling of disappointment that was creeping over him.

“I like your music,” Andrew said. “I just don’t like  _ you _ .” 

“But...you don’t know me?” 

“Exactly,” Andrew said plainly. 

Neil didn’t try to turn the music on again. He drove the rest of the way to Andrew’s house in silence thinking over Andrew’s words. Neil was his music. How could someone not like him but like his music? He thought his music reflected him. 

Neil pulled into the driveway and turned the car off. 

“Thanks.” 

“Hey, wait, Andrew,” Neil reached out to grab Andrew’s sleeve. “Listen, I just wanted to say I’m sorry.” 

“Noted,” Andrew deadpanned. “Are we done now?” 

“Um. Yeah. Yeah, we’re done.” 

“Good.” Andrew got out of the car. Neil offered him a small goodbye that was ignored. He watched as Andrew walked toward the front door of the house and went in without ever looking back. 

Neil was about to pull out when he saw a black paparazzi van driving down the street. He sank into his seat to try and hide himself.  _ Fuck. _ Neil sighed. He just couldn’t catch a fucking break today. 

***

Thankfully, no one was up when Andrew got into the house. He could hear faint snoring coming from one of the bedrooms. He went into the kitchen to get himself a well deserved snack for having to put up the absurd amount of stupidity he had to deal with all night. Aaron and Nicky were never going to hear the end of it. It was basically all their fault this happened. Basically. 

He got out a box of chocolate chip cookies and poured himself a glass of milk. He was mid dip when he heard tapping coming from the back door of the kitchen. He grabbed one of the kitchen knives and crept as quietly as he could to the sound. When he got closer he didn’t know if he was more infuriated by the fact that it was Neil Josten and not a murderer or that he was probably going to have to deal with even more bullshit now. 

Andrew opened the door and without letting Neil Josten speak first said, “Go away.” 

“I’ll give you $5,000 if you do me this favor,” Neil Josten said quickly. 

“It’s not a favor if you pay for it,” Andrew pointed out. 

“So is that a yes?” 

Andrew couldn’t believe this stupid fucking day. He cursed Nicky. He cursed Aaron. He cursed Betsy for having friends that had to live in California. He cursed this dumb ass Maserati for being basically ten million pounds. When he and Neil Josten finally pushed the car completely into the garage he let out an over dramatic sigh but he didn’t care. Neil Josten should know just how much of an inconvenience he was. 

Andrew threw a sleeping bag at Neil’s head. “You’ll be out of here by morning.” It wasn’t a question but a command. Andrew didn’t want to know what David or Abby would think if they found out Andrew was allowing a stranger to sleep in their garage. 

“Yes,” Neil promised. “No one will know I was here.” 

“I’ll know,” Andrew said, just to be a dick. 

Neil looked frantically through the windows in the garage and ignored Andrew’s jab. Andrew found himself sort of annoyed that Neil didn’t snark back. He wouldn’t ever admit this but Andrew was quite interested in meeting the loud mouthed problem teen the media always spoke about. 

“Do you have any spare clothes I could use as a disguise when I leave in the morning?” 

“Uh, I don’t know. You can check those boxes?” 

Neil went through the boxes and pulled out a light blue bucket hat. Andrew recognized it from that one summer Kevin visited South Carolina and wore it basically the whole week. That was the same summer Andrew figured out his sexuality. Seeing Neil in that hat was stirring something inside of Andrew that he really would rather not acknowledge. 

“How do I look?” Neil asked. 

“Stupid.” Andrew was smooth as always. He changed the subject, quickly. “Do you really think the paparazzi are going to care that much about where you are?” 

“You don’t understand. They’re everywhere,” Neil said. 

“Paranoid.” 

Neil huffed, “You know what? Just forget it.” 

“I’d love to,” Andrew tried to add his usual heat to his words but he wasn’t sure it came across. He didn’t like the resigned look on Neil Josten’s stupid face. He also realized this was the first time in a while he thought of Neil as Neil Josten and not just ‘Neil’. Andrew wanted to erase that immediately. “Whatever. So do you need anything else?” 

“Nah,” Neil Josten said. “I’m cool.” 

“Yeah, so cool you’re sleeping in your car tonight,” Andrew teased hoping it would bring some light back to Neil Josten’s eyes. 

Neil laughed and Andrew hated that he liked it and then he was starting to see him as just Neil again. Andrew turned around to leave but felt a tug on his sleeve. 

“Andrew…” Neil said his name like it was important. Like it mattered. His ocean blue eyes were staring straight into his plain hazel ones. Andrew snapped. 

“Stop doing that.” 

“What am I doing?” 

“Oh bullshit. You know exactly what you’re doing. I’m sure you do it all the time. You give boys and girls that...that  _ look _ ,” Andrew bit out, “and you probably expect them to just swoon and fall head over heels for you.” 

Neil looked amused but Andrew was determined. “Well guess what, pipedream, it won’t work with me. So just stop with your stares and get over yourself.” 

Andrew marched out of the garage. He kicked at a potted plant and swore that tomorrow morning, he was going to burn every last magazine with Neil Josten’s face on it. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the acoustic version of Hero really is THAT song ok


	5. Five

Andrew dragged himself to the kitchen table. He was the last one to arrive. He took a seat next to Nicky and tried to ignore the suspicious looks his cousin was giving him. He poked at his pancakes and let the conversations around him go in one ear and right out the other. 

“Is there more syrup?” He heard Aaron ask. 

“I think there’s more in the garage,” Abby said. “You can go look.” 

“Okay!” Aaron pushed back his chair. It wasn’t until he heard the back door open that Andrew’s brain caught up with his surroundings. 

“No! I’ll go look.” He got up and ran out the back door to try and catch up with Aaron. 

When he got close enough to Aaron, Aaron scoffed at him. “How was your night Andrew? Enjoy yourself?” 

“Not particularly, no,” Andrew said, honestly. 

“Matt Boyd was waiting by the car when me and Nicky finally got out of the club. Neil Josten was there, by the way, but I suppose you already knew that since you left with him! Did you even get his autograph for Katelyn? I bet you didn’t. You’re so selfish!” 

“Aaron,” Andrew said exasperated. “I don’t know what Matt Boyd told you but I did not leave with Neil Josten. I was trying to get through the backdoor to find you both and he opened it into my head. He drove me to the emergency room to get it checked out to make sure I wasn’t concussed. He left before the examination was even done. I had to take a cab home.” 

Andrew only felt slightly sick at lying to his brother but he didn’t think the whole story was necessary. Or that anyone would even believe him. 

Aaron looked surprised. “Wait, really?” 

“Yeah,” Andrew said. “I threw up on Matt Boyd’s shoes.” 

“Holy shit,” Aaron laughed. “Only you would be a complete disaster when meeting A list celebrities.” 

Andrew sighed in relief. He almost forgot why he even came out here until Aaron clicked the button on the remote to open the garage. Andrew jumped for it and pressed the close button. 

“Andrew, what the hell?” Aaron tried to wrestle the remote back from him but Andrew was stronger. They went back and forth until Kevin came outside and walked right past them. 

“You two are so weird.” Kevin pulled the garage open manually from the bottom and Andrew’s heart fell out of his chest. 

The garage door opened but there was no Maserati to be found. 

Andrew thanked the stars. But he still hated Neil Josten. He followed Aaron and Kevin back into the house. Nicky was sitting on the couch and motioned for Aaron to come over. 

“Aaron! Look! They’re doing a story on Neil Josten!” 

Andrew ran over and tried to take the remote away from Nicky to change the channel. 

“Andrew? What the hell is wrong with you today?” Aaron asked. Andrew was surprised that he actually had to put a fight in to keep the remote away from both Nicky and Aaron. 

The lady on the television spoke, “Allison Reynolds celebrated her birthday at the infamous club The Foxhole last night but she arrived without Neil Josten. Additionally, power couple Matt Boyd and Dan Wilds arrived in Josten’s black limousine but without Josten, himself. No one saw Josten arrive at the club, but inside party goers confirmed that he was in fact there and he was seen on Reynold’s Instagram confirming his attendance. Apparently, he left right after performing for the crowd and then magically appeared at his own mansion for a party hosted by his uncle Stuart Hatford. Allegedly, Josten was seen trying to sneak in a boy to his home…” 

Andrew panicked. He didn’t mean to jump across the couch and wrestle Nicky to the ground, but sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do. He ended up with the remote and changed the channel to something else so it was all worth it in the end. The last thing he wanted to see was confirmation of his identity as Neil Josten’s new mystery boy. 

“Andrew! Stop! I need to see this!” Nicky pleaded. “Neil Josten with a boy? I knew he wasn’t straight!” 

“It’s all slander!” Andrew yelled. 

“Andrew!” Aaron was trying to pull him off of Nicky. “You don’t even like Neil Josten! Why do you care?” 

“I care about the truth!” Andrew said. “And this isn’t it!” 

Betsy interrupted their fighting with a loud clap that Andrew recognized as one of her therapy techniques she uses with her younger clients. “You know what? You boys need some west coast sun! Why don’t you all go to the beach with Kevin today?” 

“Oh yay! The beach!” Nicky flopped Andrew off of him. Nicky and Aaron raced to their respective living areas to get ready. 

Andrew, still on the floor, was kicked in the leg by Kevin. The older boy raised an eyebrow at him. “Let’s go.” 

Andrew huffed but got up. He really hated Neil Josten. 

Andrew refrained from bashing his head into the car window when Neil Josten’s stupid song came on the radio. Kevin tapped along as he drove, with Nicky and Aaron quietly singing along. They were headed toward a beach in Malibu because apparently that’s where Neil Josten surfed. 

Nicky and Kevin couldn’t believe Neil Josten almost concussed Andrew. Andrew didn’t want to tell them but he forgot that Matt probably told Nicky that Andrew had left with Neil too. 

“Andrew, you were sort of with him for a bit? Did you get any insight on who the mystery boy might have been?” Nicky asked, turning around in the passenger seat to face him. 

“No,” Andrew said. “Like I told you. He dropped me off at the emergency room and then bailed.” 

“I can’t believe Neil would do that,” Nicky said. 

“You don’t even know him.” 

“Yeah, but I get a vibe from him. I feel like he’s a soft hearted person. Really kind and caring. He probably has a secret identity he uses to volunteer at cat shelters or something,” Nicky said. 

“It does seem weird he just left you there,” Aaron said. “I mean what if you were actually concussed. You wouldn’t have been able to get home.” 

Andrew hated how observant his brother could be sometimes. He knew that Aaron thought his story was lacking a bit. But Andrew wasn’t going to tell him the truth. This was a life event he was taking to the grave. 

“Guess it’s a good thing I wasn’t concussed then.” 

“I’m so jealous you got to see him in person,” Nicky sighed. “I know you were probably dizzy but did you get a good look at his eyes? What are they like in person?” 

Andrew sighed and hoped it didn’t sound as longingly as Nicky’s did just a second ago. “Blue. Really blue.” 

Andrew followed Kevin, Nicky, and Aaron out of the car to the sandy beach. Andrew wasn’t really a beach person. Sand was itchy and the salt water was gross. Also this was the west coast so sharks. Maybe if Andrew was lucky, he would watch someone get eaten by a shark. Now that would be entertainment. 

Unfortunately life had other plans. As Andrew was walking he spotted a familiar blue bucket hat trying very hard to blend in but failing spectacularly. Andrew made sure his family was settled before walking over. Kevin had somehow already made friends with a neighboring group of beach goers and was picking teams for a volleyball game. Nicky was laying on a towel, eyes closed and earbuds in. Aaron was building his own umbrella to protect him from the sun. 

Andrew headed toward the blue bucket hat and the man that was wearing it. He took a seat right next to him in the extra beach chair that was out. 

“What a beautiful day it is today,” Andrew said. “Don’t you just love the beach? I love how there’s so many people running around and how when you leave the beach you have to clean sand from everything you own for the next ten years.” 

Neil Josten was an idiot. Any smart celebrity would have just got up and left but Neil just sat there and tried to shrink himself into his t-shirt like a turtle. 

Andrew was relentless, “Oh, I’m so sorry. Were you sleeping? My bad. You look awake now though. Could you do me a favor? Do you think you could put some sunscreen on my back?” 

Neil Josten lowered his stupid sunglasses, forcing his pure blue eyes on Andrew. 

“How’d you know it was me?” He asked. Like an idiot. 

“The hat.”

Neil laughed, “Right. What are you doing here?” 

“ _ I’m _ on spring break. What are  _ you _ doing here? Go home.” 

“I can’t,” Neil sighed. “I tried earlier but...ah forget it. You wouldn’t understand.” 

Andrew rolled his eyes. “Oh, right. I forgot. Celebrity Neil Josten is just full of problems that a nobody like me could never understand.” 

Neil bit the inside of his cheek. “Alright. There are over fifteen paparazzi vans parked outside my house with their cameras locked and loaded.” 

“Oh,” Andrew feigned sympathy. “Wow, yeah. That does seem rough...Not.” 

Andrew ignored the look Neil gave him because it seemed too close to disappointment and Andrew didn’t want to deal with the feelings that spread all over him at the sinking feeling of Neil’s disappointment. Andrew shouldn’t even care! Oh what a hard life! You have people who park outside your house. There are people dying in the world and Neil Josten wants what from Andrew? Sympathy? Neil Josten could go fuck himself. He could go find someone else to tell his sob stories to because he wasn’t getting one ounce of anything from Andrew. 

Andrew blatantly ignored the fact that  _ he _ was the one to approach Neil in this situation. 

“See,” Neil said. “Told you that you wouldn’t understand. I just need to get home in a car the paparazzi wouldn’t recognize...Hey…” 

Oh, no. 

“What are you driving?” Neil asked. 

Oh, no. But this time with more feeling. 

***

Andrew crept toward the bag Kevin dropped next to Nicky’s towel. He pulled the keys out quietly without alerting Nicky to his presence. Kevin and Aaron were both now playing a game of beach volleyball so he didn’t need to worry about them. 

He grabbed the keys and motioned to Neil to follow him back toward the parking lot. 

Before Andrew gave Neil the keys to Kevin’s shit-mobile he held out his own hand. 

“What?” Neil asked. 

“You can’t just leave us stranded at a beach in Malibu with no way to get home. We’re trading cars. So...keys.” 

Neil was reluctant. He slowly pulled his own car keys out of his pocket. “Listen...she’s my baby, okay? Just…you know be gentle ok? Don’t speed in her. She needs to be cherished.” 

Andrew looked at him with disgust. “She has a name doesn’t she?” 

“Obviously,” Neil said. “But I’m not telling you.” 

“Whatever, let’s just do this.” He handed off the keys to Neil once he had the keys to a black Maserati in his own hands. 

Aaron and Nicky were going to have a field day. Kevin would probably be okay about it since Andrew basically got him a new car. Andrew felt himself growing itchy at the fact that he’d probably have to confess to the full story now about what really happened last night. 

Luckily, or maybe unluckily, Andrew didn’t have time to dwell for long. Neil Josten let out a string of curses before pulling Andrew into a crouching position. Andrew saw there were two vans of paparazzi idling by. One of the vans opened to let out six or seven people with cameras. They looked like predators, stalking along the cars looking for something to photograph. 

“Fuck. How do they know where to find me?” 

Andrew let out a humorous huff. “Everyone knows where to find you. They have twitter pages specifically dedicated to knowing your location at all times.” 

Neil looked genuinely surprised and Andrew wondered how someone so thick skulled made it this far. 

“Just...come on.” Neil left him to crawl to the driver's seat. Andrew could have easily just walked away and let Neil deal with this himself. He was going to have to ask Betsy for a recommendation for a psychiatrist when he got back home to South Carolina because he clearly needed some serious help considering he just willingly got into the ugly mustard vehicle with Neil. 

“Okay, okay, duck,” Neil said. 

Andrew shrank down in his seat and watched Neil do the same. He could hear faint murmurs of the paparazzi discussing which areas of the beach to check. 

“Here, put these on.” Neil handed Andrew his sunglasses. Andrew put them on as Neil turned to the back seat and started rummaging through Kevin’s filth. 

“What are you doing?” 

“Looking for something...Aha! Here!” Neil pulled out a gross looking USC baseball hat and handed it to Andrew. “Put this on and then put your head down.” 

Neil pulled his own hat further down his face and then carefully started the car. He slowly crept out of the parking spot. Andrew saw as one of the paparazzi squinted to get a better look at the car. The paparazzi man didn’t seem to recognize Neil; he turned around and went back to hunting for something else. 

They finally got on to the main road and Andrew couldn’t help but laugh at the ridiculousness. 

“You drive like an old man,” Andrew pointed out. 

“Excuse me for being cautious with a car that looks like it’s going to fall apart at any second,” Neil laughed. “Oh, I’m gonna need my sunglasses back.” 

Andrew smirked, “No way. I actually like these. I think I’ll keep them.” 

“Maybe I’ll give them to you later.” 

“Really!” Andrew fake gasped in awe. “Because my friends back home just won’t believe that I, Andrew Minyard, have an actual pair of sunglasses that Neil Josten wore on his face!”

“Hilarious,” Neil deadpanned. 

“How much money do you think I could make by selling these online? Could you sign them for me to raise the value?” 

Neil shook his head but seemed to enjoy the banter. Andrew hated that he felt giddy at the idea of making Neil Josten laugh. “Hand em’ over.” 

Andrew conceded. “So, how long am I stuck driving with you this time?” 

Thankfully, Neil didn’t point out that Andrew got in the car of his own volition. “Only until the paparazzi leave the beach. Why don’t we go do something?” 

“Like what?” 

“You said you were on spring break,” Neil said. “What have you done so far?” 

Andrew sneered. “Nothing besides follow you around.” 

“Really?” Neil looked pleased. 

“Yeah. With my brother. And with my cousin. You remember? The ones I had to ditch at the club when you knocked me out with a door?” 

“Oh. Right,” Neil said sheepishly. 

“They’re obsessed with you,” Andrew didn’t know what made him say it. “I, on the other hand, could not care less about you or your dumb city.” 

“Okay hang on a second. That’s fine if you have beef with me but don’t take it out on L.A. She can be beautiful and endearing. You know what? That’s what we’re going to do. You are going to get your own personal tour of Los Angeles by me, Neil Josten.” 

“Can it be a different Neil Josten?” Andrew asked. 

“Nope,” Neil popped the ‘p’. “You’re stuck with me.” 

“Don’t you need to go home?” 

Neil shrugged. “We’ll take the long way.” 

Andrew mock huffed but he couldn’t find himself to actually be mad about the situation. Neil turned on the radio to the car and of course his own song was playing. Andrew rolled his eyes but laughed as the first verse came on. 

**_Wake up to the blue sky_ **

**_Grab your shades_ **

**_And let's go for a ride_ **

**_Breakfast by the ocean_ **

**_We'll do lunch at Sunset & Vine_ **

Neil tapped along on the steering wheel. Andrew wondered if he wrote his own songs. Neil looked over and smirked when he caught Andrew staring. Andrew faced forward and hoped the warmth on his cheeks wasn’t visible. Neil started singing along for the next verse. 

**_Every day's a dream in California_ **

**_Every night the stars come out to play_ **

**_Wish that I could always feel this way_ **

What’s that saying? When in Rome? Andrew decided to adapt his own saying; ‘When In A Shitty Car With Neil Josten’ and joined in during the chorus (though slightly off key and not as prettily as Neil). 

**_There's something about the sunshine, baby_ **

**_I'm seeing you in a whole new light_ **

**_Out of this world for the first time, baby_ **

**_Ohhh it’s alright_ **

Neil took Andrew to a local farmers market where Andrew was surprised with how easily Neil spoke to everyone. No one seemed to recognize it was Neil Josten. It was like Neil had a switch. 

Andrew remembered an old story about how Marilyn Monroe was once with the wife of her personal photographer Amy Greene. Marilyn asked if Amy would like to see her become  _ her _ . As though she were two different people. Amy said it was like magic. She just started carrying herself differently and suddenly heads were turning from everywhere to try and get a glimpse. 

Andrew imagined Neil could do something like that. Right now he was sending off auras of just a regular boy. Andrew tried to see if he could pinpoint anything about him that revealed celebrity Neil Josten. Andrew couldn’t find anything. He thought that maybe it was because to him, Neil was just ‘Neil’. 

Neil bought him a waffle in a cone and they walked along the streets. Andrew observed a man playing the guitar while rollerblading and a girl contorting herself to fit into a small box. 

At one of the kiosks Neil found a disposable camera. He smirked at Andrew before buying it and then took photos of Andrew doing the most touristy things. 

Andrew reluctantly posed with one of the stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He laughed as he forced Neil to pose under a giant billboard with his own face on it promoting his new album. Neil gave the camera an extreme death glare while pointing up at the sign. Andrew wanted to keep that one forever. 

Andrew was surprised with how knowledgeable Neil was. He listened intently as Neil described different buildings and pointed out different restaurants that he’d been to before. Andrew almost forgot about the fact that he completely ditched his family and Kevin at the beach. He should probably send them a message letting them know he’s okay. 

Neil pulled Andrew into a selfie with him. Andrew tried his hardest not to smile but he knew that if these photos were developed you would see happiness in his face. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> shoutout to anyone who noticed the easter egg of Gansey's car from the raven cycle in the last chapter :P 
> 
> also if it isn't obvious none of my work is ever beta read lol so if there are mistakes pls tell me i wont be offended


	6. Six

Matt Boyd was a simple man. He took care of his best friend's cars because while Neil could appreciate the surface level beauty of a car, he wasn’t the smartest when it came to mechanics. He loved his girlfriend because she was fierce and beautiful. He tolerated Allison because they’d been friends forever though he hated how she pushed Neil into the spotlight even when he didn’t want to be. 

His life was fairly easy and honestly, he liked it that way. He didn’t do well under pressure or in difficult situations. 

Which is why when Neil’s black Maserati pulled into the garage without Neil and instead three starstruck looking boys, two of whom he recognized from the previous night at the club, the only thing he could really offer was a soft “Fuck.” 

***

Andrew knew the fun couldn’t last. They were back in the car, singing, oblivious to the world when suddenly Neil let out an angry “Fuck.” Andrew turned around to see a black paparazzi van following them. 

“I need to lose the van.” 

When Andrew got home he was going to give David and Abby a serious lecture about giving their son a car that didn’t have a GPS built in. His own phone didn’t have any service and he wasn’t even sure if Neil had a phone. He hadn’t seen him use it once. Andrew ruffled through the glove compartment before finding a map. He spread it open and cursed the American school system for not making geography a higher priority. 

He gave it his best shot. “Turn right up here.” 

“You sure?” 

“Yes.” Not really but what choice did they have? 

Neil jerked the car to turn. The van was far enough away that Andrew didn’t think they would find the turn so he relaxed a bit and hoped Neil did too. They ended up on a dirt road and Andrew wasn’t sure it was a real road at all. It looked man-made and it was making the car make questionable noises. Maybe they were supposed to turn left and not right. 

“I don’t think this is a road,” Neil said. 

Andrew focused on the map. “I think if you take the next left it’ll loop back to the main road.” 

After five minutes of driving there was still no left turn in sight. “Or maybe not.” 

“Clearly not,” Neil said. 

Neil huffed and complained about the roads and lack of humans as he continued to drive. 

Finally Andrew had enough, “Holy shit. You complain more than my brother and cousin combined.” 

“Are we on the right road or not?” 

Andrew looked at the map and admitted defeat. “Not.” 

“Let me see.” 

Neil leaned over but Andrew pulled the map away from him. “Keep your eyes on the road. I’m the navigator. You’re the driver.” 

“Is that what you’re calling it?” Neil asked. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” 

“You call it navigator. I call it being a know-it-all.” 

“What did you just call me?” 

“I said you’re a know-it-all! You’re the king of making snap judgements.” Neil changed the pitch of his voice to mock Andrew, “‘Oh turn here! This is the right road, I’m sure of it!’” 

“I was sure of it!” Andrew yelled. 

“Yeah, okay,” Neil teased unkindly. “You’re so sure of things you couldn’t possibly be sure about. I don’t even know why I listened to you in the first place. You’ve never even been to L.A, why would you know how to read a map of the city?” 

“Oh my god, would you shut up already! Let’s just go! Why isn’t the car moving?” 

Neil looked confused and then pressed on the gas. The car wouldn’t budge. Neil let out a “The fuck?” 

As if Andrew knew. Andrew peaked his head out the window. They were surrounded by mud. “Oh, great.” 

Kevin’s mustard vehicle started to tip forward. Andrew and Neil shared a look. Simultaneously they both pulled themselves through the window. 

“We’ll have to push it,” Neil said. 

Andrew grabbed his backpack from inside and then tried to get himself on the roof. 

“Here, let me help you,” Neil offered out his hand. 

“Fuck off,” Andrew bit out. 

“Why are you so mad?” 

“Oh, I don’t know,” Andrew snarked. “Maybe this entire situation?” 

Andrew and Neil climbed on to the top of the car. 

“It was your idea to turn down that road,” Neil pointed out. “Not my fault you’re a terrible navigator.” 

“Yeah well you’re a terrible driver!” It was petty but Andrew didn’t care. The car was sinking further into the ground and Kevin was probably going to kill him. 

“I am a great driver!” Neil barked back. He paced slightly on the car before speaking again, “Andrew, we’re gonna have to jump.” 

“I am not jumping,” Andrew said forcefully. 

“Do you have a better idea?” 

Andrew looked around. There was conveniently a large branch that was sort of sticking out of the mud. Getting to the branch would require a bit of a reach but it was better than trying to jump directly to solid ground. “Use that branch as a bridge.” 

Neil stepped down so that he was on the hood of the car. He slowly inched his way across to Andrew’s side. He used the open window as a base point. He had one foot balancing on the door and the other was stretching across to try and get footing on the branch. 

The car sank a little lower. 

“Go faster,” Andrew urged. 

“Okay, okay.” Neil managed to get himself onto the branch. Andrew followed his path. 

“This isn’t even my car,” Andrew groaned. The front of the car sank a little further into the mud.

“I understand that. Give me your hand.” 

Neil reached out and Andrew let him take his hand. Neil pulled Andrew off the car and onto the branch. Andrew pushed too much of his body weight at once. 

Neil was thrown off balance by the force and tumbled straight into the mud. Andrew tried to control his own balance but Neil’s hand was still interlocked with his and he was pulled down right along with Neil. 

Andrew let out an embarrassing screech as he hit the muddy water. 

“Grab the branch,” Neil instructed. 

Andrew did as he was told. They used the branch to pull themselves out to solid ground. Andrew was dripping wet. His phone was probably destroyed and his clothes clung to him making him feel itchy all over. 

Neil helped Andrew stand up and then they watched as Kevin’s car sank until it was completely submerged. 

“You killed Mustard,” Andrew accused. 

“Mustard was not the name of this car.” 

“No,” Andrew admitted. “But still.” 

“Fuck.” 

Andrew went to go check to see if his phone was okay when he realized his backpack was not with him. 

“My backpack!” Andrew bent down and tried to move the water around to feel for his backpack. Neil’s phone seemed to be fine since it started ringing. Neil bent down to help him, ignoring his phone. The phone kept ringing and ringing. 

“Would you answer your fucking phone!” 

“Alright, alright!” Neil took a step back and tried to talk to whoever was on the phone. Andrew couldn’t hear the whoever was on the other side of the phone but Neil just kept repeating ‘can you hear me?’. After the fifth time Andrew thought it was pretty fucking obvious that the recipeient could not hear Neil. Neil put his phone away as Andrew pulled up his soggy backpack. His book was probably ruined and there was no way in hell his phone survived. 

“When we get out of here you’re paying for a new one,” Andrew told Neil. 

“Oh I’m paying for it right now.” 

Andrew glared and did what he should’ve done when he first saw Neil on the beach. He walked away. 

“Oh come on, Andrew, wait, where are you going?” 

Andrew stopped and faced Neil. “To the beach where my brother and cousin are probably freaking out right now.” 

Andrew kept walking. 

“Andrew, wait!” 

“What?” Andrew yelled. 

Neil scratched the back of his head. “The beach is that way.” He pointed to the opposite direction Andrew was walking in. 

Andrew wished for nothing more in that moment than for a bolt of lightning to strike Neil Josten down. He sucked in his pride and turned to walk in the right direction, not paying attention if Neil was following him or not. 

They walked for about ten minutes and then the swampy muddy area turned a little more beach-like. There was no ocean yet but the ground had firmed up a bit and there was a small body of water. 

“Are you okay?” Neil asked him. Like an idiot. 

“Now you're concerned?” Andrew bit. 

“I’ve always been concerned.” 

“Maybe you should stop.” 

“Why are you mad? I’m in this situation too, Andrew.” 

“It’s different!” Andrew grunted. He hated walking and he was getting tired. “I have to go home and explain how I ruined Kevin’s car. It’ll probably take me years to pay him back for it. You’re going to go home and nothing will change for you. You’ll still be Neil Josten. Rich and famous. I just want to go home already” 

“You know what I want?” Neil asked. “I just want to have fun. Have one day without people expecting me to be more than I am because I sing a few popular songs. I’m having a great time because there’s no one trying to get the latest picture of me. I’d appreciate it if you could just stop complaining so I can enjoy it.” 

Neil increased his pace so he was ahead of Andrew. 

“Wow,” Andrew stopped. “Neil Josten doesn’t get what he wants so he storms off! I bet your friends chase after you when you do that. I bet you love that they do that too.”

Andrew changed the pitch of his voice to mock Neil like he did earlier. “”Oh, Neil, I’m so sorry! Could you ever forgive me?’” Andrew’s tone was cruel, “You’re such a brat.” 

“I’m a brat?” Neil asked in disbelief. “What about you?” 

“What about me?” 

“Over the last two days I’ve done nothing but think about you.” 

“Oh, really? So when you hit me with the door, hid me in your own house, wrecked my friend's car, and dropped me in mud you were just being thoughtful?” 

Neil tilted his head and slightly nodded. 

“I pity your friends,” Andrew said. 

“You wish you were one,” Neil bit. 

“I’d rather go down with the car.” Andrew checked Neil in the shoulder before walking away. He grunted and was over all a bit dramatic as he pushed through some tall grass. 

Neil caught up with him and adjusted himself so he was walking backwards and could keep being face to face with Andrew. “I’m confused.” 

“About what?”

“When we were taking pictures and walking around earlier, I thought you liked me.” 

“You thought wrong,” Andrew said apathetically. 

Neil’s face scrunched up. “But...everyone likes me. Why don’t you like me?” 

“Not everyone likes you,” Andrew felt like he was explaining the alphabet to a toddler. “You just think everyone likes you.” 

“Everyone does like me,” Neil pushed. “It’s because I’m likeable.” 

“No, it’s because you’re a star,” Andrew said, bitterly. 

“What does that even mean?” Neil stopped walking.

“Your life isn’t real!” Andrew patronized. “You park in no parking zones, you never have to wait in lines, you get away with tipping badly on bills, people applaud you for everything you do. Your house is a mansion. You have doctors on call so you never have to wonder if you can afford to get help when you’re sick. You have people who wait on you all day and night and I’ll bet you don’t even know their names!” 

“I know their names!” Neil insisted.

“Name one,” Andrew challenged. 

“Seth.” 

“You made that up.” 

Neil bit his lip. “Well, whatever. Matt and Dan know everyone.” 

“See?” Andrew pointed out. “That’s not normal. Your best friends shouldn’t also be your secretary and driver. They should just be your friends. And don’t even get me started on your photo ops with Allison Reynolds. Do you even like her or do you just use her as arm candy? Real people date others because they want to be with someone, not because it’ll get them over ten thousand likes on a photo. What’s Matt’s middle name?” 

Andrew watched as Neil failed to come up with an answer. 

“That’s all I’m saying,” Andrew pushed past Neil again and continued to walk. 

“Okay, wait, wait, Andrew, wait up,” Neil pulled on Andrew’s sleeve to get him to pause. “Are you saying I’m not a real person? Because I am.” 

Andrew rolled his eyes, “I stand corrected.” 

“Okay fine, what if I told you something about me no one else knew?” Neil offered. 

Andrew was intrigued but he bullied on and kept walking as Neil stood in front of him and continued to walk backwards. “What?” 

Neil backwards walked into a taller field of grass that was taller than both Andrew and Neil. “Andrew, from the very first day I met you, I just…” 

Neil didn’t finish that sentence. He must’ve tripped on something because he fell back and suddenly Andrew couldn’t see him anymore. 

“Neil!?” Andrew’s voice sounded a little more panicked than he would’ve liked but he charged forward through the grass to try and save Neil from whatever got him. When Andrew got close enough Neil popped up and let out a growl. He pulled Andrew into a small pond. 

Neil was a bitch so Andrew decided to be a bitch back. 

“I can’t swim,” Andrew faked. 

Andrew saw real fear as Neil muttered ‘shit’ and then moved to help Andrew out. When Neil approached him, Andrew jumped up and dunked him in the water. 

“You dick,” Neil exclaimed. Neil returned a splash and soon they were in an all out splash war. 

Eventually they got out. They sat near each other, letting their heavier clothes dry off a bit in the sun. Andrew didn’t know what time it was but he was enjoying the sun and how it was making Neil’s hair look even more vibrant. 

“Did you know my parents are dead?” Neil asked out of the blue.

“So are mine.” Neil Josten was not playing the dead parents card with Andrew. 

“My dad had his own gossip company. Sort of like TMZ and Kathy Ferdinand.” Andrew recognized Kathy as the woman who was on the television this morning. The one who dropped the bomb of Neil’s mystery boy. Andrew hated her. Neil continued, “My mom was a big actress. My dad would send his own paparazzi after her whenever she was out. One day she had enough. She tried to run away but one of my dad’s paparazzi vans chased her off the road. He died like a month later. They said it was due to natural causes but I think my mom just haunted the shit out of him.” 

Andrew thought this explained why Neil hated the paparazzi so much. And why he was always doing the most to avoid them. Andrew figured Neil didn’t want his condolences. Instead he offered his own truth, to make them even. “My mom tried to kill me and my brother. She’s dead now and we live with someone else. Her name’s Betsy and she’s more of a mom than my real mom ever was.” 

They both fell into silence. Andrew thought Neil was probably internalizing his confession like Andrew had done for him. 

“This is nice,” Andrew tried to offer something that wasn’t so depressing as dead parents. 

Neil laughed and laid back against the grass. He put his hands behind his head and not for the first time Andrew had to turn away from him to stop his own thoughts about how attractive Neil could be. 

“It is,” Neil said. “I wish I could stay here forever where no one could find me.” 

“Why?” 

“You were right. Everyone wants something from me. A photograph, a performance, whatever.” 

“Even your uncle?” Andrew asked. 

“It’s complicated,” Neil said. “He doesn’t really know how to be an uncle. He throws himself into managing my career and thinks it’s the same thing. All we talk about right now is this movie deal. He thinks it’ll be really big for me.” 

“What do you think?” 

“I think if I get the offer then I have to take it.” 

“Aren’t you touring soon?” 

Neil smirked. “You know my tour schedule?” 

“Fuck off,” Andrew said. “Aaron knows it. A tour and a movie seem like a lot at once.” 

Andrew was noticing that he was using Aaron as an excuse for all his Neil Josten knowledge just as Aaron uses Katelyn. 

“I don’t want to disappoint anyone. I’ll figure it out when the time comes.” Neil seemed indifferent to his whole life. Like he was just someone who was along for the ride and thought he owed it to people to overwork himself. 

“Maybe I don’t understand,” Andrew admitted softly. 

“What?” Neil sat up on his elbows to look at Andrew. 

“Your life. It’s so different from mine. I thought you were just a bratty loud mouth. I mean you are, but maybe there’s more to you. Everything you do gets talked about like it’s the next big thing. You probably don’t feel like yourself a lot. “ 

Neil laughed and looked off to the side. “I feel like myself with you.” 

Andrew ignored what that did to his heart. Andrew didn’t respond but picked a weed out of the ground and threw it at Neil. 

“Tell me about you,” Neil said. 

“That could take a while. I live a very exciting life,” Andrew deadpanned. 

Neil laughed and Andrew wanted to drown in it. Neil started directly at Andrew and Andrew couldn’t take it. 

“You’re doing it again.” 

“Doing what?” 

“That thing with your eyes.” 

“Oh, this?” Neil crossed his eyes and Andrew laughed. He didn’t think he'd ever laughed as much with anyone. 

“At least we know your next big career move won’t be in comedy.” 

“Fuck you, I’m funny,” Neil snorted. 

“Funny-looking.” 

“You like me.” Neil stated it like a fact. Despite Andrew repeating all day that he did not like Neil Josten, Neil still found it in him to be so confident in the assumption that Andrew liked him. 

Andrew didn’t deign that with a response. Instead he looked back at the water and the sun. The sun was closer to the point of setting now. Andrew decided to end this before he did or said something stupid. 

“We should go.” 

Neil looked sad about it but got up and then pulled Andrew up off the ground. Neil offered Andrew his hand and Andrew took it. He could have this moment. Neil led him down the path that connected to the beach. 

Andrew imagined an alternate universe. One where he could walk across the sand with Neil Josten’s hand in his. One where this day wasn’t a fluke in Andrew’s below average life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> one more chapter after this!!!!!!!


	7. Seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this chapter took a while to upload! I wanted to make sure the last chapter was as perfect as possible. 
> 
> thank you to junkiejosten10 for the beta read <3

“Well, we made it,” Andrew said. The beach opened up. They were still sort of far away but Andrew could see a bunch of bathing suit-clad people in the distance. 

“Yeah, look,” Neil started. “I had a really great time today.” 

“Me too,” Andrew admitted. 

“You’re so different than any other person I’ve ever met.” 

“Is that bad?” 

“No,” Neil smiled. “It’s good. You’re not afraid to call me out on my shit. No one else would say half of what you’ve said to me in the last twenty-four hours.”

Maybe this could work. Maybe Neil would tell him that he wanted to have more great days and they could stay in contact when Andrew went back home. 

“Well you’re different too. I mean for someone who has such expensive cars, you’re a horrible driver.” 

“Oh, you’re the worst,” Neil laughed. “That wounded me.” 

Andrew grabbed Neil’s hand and they continued to walk a bit. “Do you really think I’m a know-it-all?” 

“No,” Neil said firmly. “I think you’re amazing.” 

Andrew’s cheeks burned. “I think you’re amazing too.” 

Neil did his usual eye thing and this time Andrew wanted to fall for it. Neil’s face inched closer to Andrew’s.  _ This is it. _ Andrew was ready. He let his eyes flutter shut but nothing happened. 

“Shit.” 

Andrew startled back. There was a couple who was dragging a surfboard up the beach from the water. Neil pulled the light blue bucket hat out of his pocket and quickly shoved it on his head. 

“That was close,” Neil sighed. “Okay, back to the real world. You know what happens next, right?” 

“Um, no?” Andrew was confused. 

“This ends here,” Neil said plainly. 

Andrew put up his defense. “There is no this.” 

“Andrew,” Neil chided. 

“What?” Andrew was angry. Andrew hadn’t felt true anger in a very long time but he couldn’t deny the sickness he felt in his veins at this moment.

“You can’t tell anybody about what happened today. Not your cousin or even your brother.” 

“It’s not like they’re going to post about it or anything.” 

“Look,” Neil said. “If we walk down that beach together people are going to go crazy. They’ll swarm us. They’ll figure out who you are and then they’ll never leave you alone. It’ll be crazy and I won’t get that movie deal.” 

“Why does it have to get crazy?” Andrew asked. 

“Because I’m Neil Josten and you’re just a nobody from South Carolina,” Neil’s jaw clenched. 

Andrew froze. It’s what he’s known all along, but he didn’t expect that hearing the words come out of Neil’s mouth would hit him so hard in the gut. 

“I have to go.” Andrew pushed past Neil. 

“Wait, wait,” Neil cut him off. “What just happened?” 

Andrew couldn’t believe this. No, actually, he could believe this. That’s why it was so much worse. 

“You tell me. One minute I’m amazing and then the next you’re embarrassed to be seen with me?” 

“Andrew, I’m not embarrassed…”

“No?” Andrew hated how his voice cracked. “If I were Allison Reynolds you would march down that beach and make sure everyone got a photo. But no, I’m just Andrew. A nobody who you don’t want to be seen with.” 

“That’s not what I meant,” Neil pleaded. “I meant that you’re normal and I want it to stay that way for you. You need to believe me. If the paparazzi find out who you are they’ll never leave you alone.” 

“Fuck you, Neil Josten.” Andrew pushed past Neil with more force this time. 

“Andrew, wait!” 

“What? What else could you possibly want?” Andrew was exasperated. 

“It’s just… the pictures you took. I should probably keep them.” 

Andrew’s jaw dropped. He shook his head and willed his tear ducts to cooperate. Andrew Minyard did not cry. And he especially did not cry over boys like Neil Josten. 

“You want the camera?” 

“Just in case,” Neil had the nerve to look sheepish. “I wouldn’t want the pictures to get out.” 

“Fine,” Andrew aggressively rifled through his still slightly soggy backpack to pull out the disposable camera. The pictures probably wouldn’t even develop properly. Andrew threw the camera in the sand. “Take the camera. There’s nothing I’d want to remember from today anyway.” 

Andrew was about to storm off when he remembered he didn’t even know if Aaron, Nicky, and Kevin were still at the beach. He huffed and turned back toward Neil who was bent in the sand trying to salvage the camera. 

He held his hand out, “I need money for a cab.” 

Neil’s features softened as he pulled out his wallet. He put a wad of cash into Andrew’s hand. 

“I said a cab, not a plane.” 

“It’s fine,” Neil said. “I still owe you for staying in the garage, remember?” 

Andrew turned to leave but not before his sleeve was tugged again. “Andrew, wait. I didn’t want to say goodbye like this.” 

“Well it looks like Neil Josten isn’t going to get what he wants for once,” Andrew was unsympathetic. “How does this work for you? Let’s just pretend today never happened. You won’t talk about me and I promise I will not give you a second thought.” 

“You can judge me all you want, Andrew. But you don’t know what it’ll be like. The paparazzi will never let you go. They’ll look at you as a prize and once they win you, they’ll turn it into something ugly. They’ll ruin everything.” 

“They don’t have to,” Andrew wiped at his face. “You already did.” 

This time Andrew made sure to storm off quicker so Neil couldn’t catch up again. He didn’t want to hear anymore. He couldn’t believe he let himself get entangled with Neil Josten. Couldn’t believe that he finally decided to let someone in and it happened to be the one person he couldn’t have. He let Neil hold his heart and then crush it within a day. 

Andrew found an old payphone and hoped that it worked. He tried to control his breathing. He felt so stupid. Andrew used to think that he wasn’t made for feelings. Now Andrew knew he was capable of feelings and someone having feelings for him, he just wasn’t allowed to have it. This hurt more. 

Andrew made the call for a cab, thankful he somehow remembered Kevin’s address. When Andrew got out of the photobooth he saw a swarm of boys and girls alike all shoving cameras and notebooks at Neil Josten’s face. 

He watched as Neil Josten, seemingly unaffected by the previous events, smiled with everyone who asked. Andrew felt sick. Andrew left the phonebooth and caught a single tear on his sleeve. 

When Andrew made it home, Aaron, Nicky, and Kevin gave him a concerned and confused look but he didn’t speak to them and none of them made any effort to try and break through the newly made walls Andrew put up. 

The rest of the week went by too slowly for Andrew’s liking. He didn’t go out again. He picked at his food every meal. Put headphones in at night to dissuade Aaron from talking to him. 

Andrew couldn’t wait for the plane. He wanted to be high off the ground where the only thing that could hurt him was plain and obvious. 

***

Neil lost himself in his music. 

**_I put my trust in fate_ **

**_That two will come away_ **

**_And if it's right, it's undeniable, yeah_ **

**_I'll be your hero_ **

**_I, I can be everything you need_ **

**_If you're the one for me_ **

**_Like gravity, I will be unstoppable_ **

**_I, yeah I believe in destiny_ **

**_I may be an ordinary guy without his soul_ **

He banged out the last session of recording quickly. He felt prickly around his heart. Like something was quite right. He put his guitar back on the stand when Matt came in. 

“This is sad, Neil.” 

Neil sighed. He opened his laptop and started clicking through the photos that he developed. Surprisingly the sogginess of Andrew’s backpack and sand didn’t ruin the photos. He clicked through a few. There was Andrew posing with a Hollywood star, Andrew holding up a fake Oscar, Andrew in stupid sunglasses Neil forced him to put on. 

“Are you okay?” Matt asked. 

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Neil said. “I just can’t stop thinking about him.” 

“Me neither,” Matt crossed his arms. “He puked all over my shoes.” 

Neil laughed. He needed that. “He was just so different, you know? He was real. He was smart and didn’t care that I was Neil Josten. He was funny, and witty, and just...I don’t know. There’s not a lot of people like that. He was honest. Brutally honest, but still honest.” 

“Are you cheating on me, Neil?” Allison Reynolds clacked into the recording room. 

“How long have you been standing there?” Neil asked. 

“Doesn’t matter.” Allison clicked through the photos herself. “Jesus, Neil. You’ve got it bad.” 

“I’ll give you two some space,” Matt excused himself.

“Why are you here, Allison?” Neil didn’t have time for another photo op. Even if he did have time, he wouldn’t want to do it. 

Allison chewed the inside of her lip. “Renee and I are going on a little vacation together. I wanted to give you a heads up before you see photos of us.” 

“You’re coming out.” 

“Yeah,” Allison played with a strand of her hair. “Thank you, Neil. For doing all this for me all these years. I’m tired of hiding.” 

Neil embraced his friend. “I’m happy for you, Allison.” 

Allison smiled and nodded toward the computer. “You could be happy too. Not everyone’s as patient as Renee. You should go to him before it’s too late.” 

Neil was left alone in the studio. He was free. He was technically always free. Neil and Allison were never really together but it felt although he had shed some kind of force that had been holding him back. 

***

Nicky and Aaron had already said their goodbyes and were waiting in the cab. Betsy was embracing Abby. Andrew stood off to the side. Kevin clapped him on the shoulder. 

“Are you going to be okay, Andrew?” 

Andrew nodded. “Yeah.” 

“I don’t know what happened,” Kevin said. “But I imagine it must’ve been something intense because of how much you’re hurting right now. It’ll get better, okay?”

“Your car,” was all Andrew had to say. 

Andrew hadn’t even seen David walk out but his voice was rough when he spoke, “Car was a piece of shit anyway. If anything this will be a good lesson in teaching Kevin how to save money for something he wants.” 

Andrew let out a little emotion, “Glad I could help.” 

Kevin helped Andrew with his suitcase even though he didn’t need it. Andrew held his hand on the roof of the cab before getting in. He took one last look at the scenery around him. This would be the last time he was in California. Andrew made a vow to never come back. 

David, Abby, and Kevin stood on the corner and waved as the cab pulled away. Andrew sat with his head on the window and his eyes closed. 

***

“Andrew Minyard.” Ichirou Moriyama’s voice boomed through the speakers. They were on a video call. He held a photo up of Andrew getting into a cab. “Such a nice name for a nice boy.” 

Neil sighed, “Where did you get that?” 

“Where do you think I got it? Kathy Ferdinand has had a whole fleet of photographers following you all week.” 

“I was so careful,” Neil promised. He refused to look over at Uncle Stuart. He didn’t want to face the disappointed expression Stuart was sure to have. 

“This is exactly why my father doesn’t want to take a chance on you. Picking a boy only a few years older than his youngest son for a major movie role. You attract more trouble than you’re worth.” 

“Mr. Moriyama,” Stuart pleaded. “Give us a second chance. I promise Neil is the most hard-working boy I know. He’ll be the perfect star while filming. No paps, no scandals.” 

Ichirou groaned on camera. “Fine. Fine. I hope you’ll remember how much kinder I am than my father. Make the story go away.” 

“How do I do that?” Neil asked. 

“You call Kathy Ferdinand. Offer her an exclusive. Say you have no idea who this boy is. Just some obsessed fan that stalked you.” 

“You want me to lie?” 

“Neil!” Ichirou chided. “You’re going to be an actor. You’ll have to get used to lying. You will say whatever you have to say to make this go away. Either this boy goes away or the movie deal does. Your choice.” 

Ichirou waited for Neil to say something else. Neil nodded reluctantly. He supposed it was a good thing he’d never get to see Andrew again. He didn’t know that he would be able to face him after this. 

***

When Andrew arrived home there were dozens of reporters waiting on his front lawn. He could barely see with the flashes in his face. Aaron grabbed his wrist and pulled him through to the front door. Nicky tried to distract them all by posing. Betsy had to go back outside to get him. Andrew sat on the couch and pointedly did not make any attempt to explain. 

Aaron stood in front of him, “You have to talk to us, Andrew.” 

Betsy sat beside him, “What happened out there in California?” 

“Nothing!” Andrew sighed. “Nothing bad, okay?” 

Nicky’s footsteps came barreling into the room, “Andrew! They’re talking about you on Kathy Ferdinand’s show!” 

Aaron grabbed the remote and turned on the television. Andrew sat, shell-shocked, with his family while his life blew up. 

_ Neil Josten sat perfectly styled on a stool across from Kathy Ferdinand. Behind them on a screen was a paparazzi photo of Andrew, taken the day they left Kevin’s house. Andrew hadn’t even noticed there was a photographer around.  _

_ Kathy had her claws out, “So...Andrew Minyard.”  _

_ “Yeah,” Neil says on the screen. “He looks familiar.”  _

_ Kathy gives Neil a knowing look, “We know he was on the beach with you, Neil.”  _

_ “Lots of fans come to Malibu to watch me surf. Maybe I took a photo with him or signed something for him, but that’s all.”  _

_ Kathy sharpens her talons, “Our sources tell us that he came all the way from South Carolina to see you.”  _

_ “Wow,” Neil says. “That’s far. I’m sorry I didn’t get to meet him.”  _

Andrew’s heart hurt. 

_ Kathy looks resigned. “So, you’re saying you don’t know this boy? You don’t know Andrew Minyard.”  _

_ “Yeah,” Neil says. “I don’t know what he’s saying about me, but I don’t know who he is.”  _

_ Neil shrugs at the camera. “Okay,” Kathy says. “Well, you heard it here first.”  _

Aaron, Nicky, and Betsy all stare at him. Unable to take it, he storms off to his room. He slams the door and then pushes his face into his pillow. He can feel his heart thumping and he hates,  _ hates,  _ how he feels right now. He hates that Neil Josten got to him. He hates that Neil Josten lied about him. He hates that everyone is going to think he’s a liar because of it. 

He hears a knock on his door. He makes no move to open it. The door opens anyway and he hears feet approach him. He feels the bed dip. Andrew turns his head to see his twin sitting there giving him a questioning look. Andrew sighs and then nods. 

He puts his face back into his pillow as Aaron makes himself comfortable in his bed. Aaron lies on his side, facing Andrew, and cards his fingers through Andrew’s hair. 

“You don’t have to tell me what happened,” Aaron whispered. “But just know that I’m on your side. I’d believe you over anyone.” 

It almost makes Andrew cry. He pushes his face further into the pillow and allows his brother to comfort him until he falls asleep. The last thing he hears is Aaron’s soft voice telling him it’s going to be okay. 

When he wakes up, minutes or hours later. Aaron is still next to him. Andrew rolls over and sits up, rubbing his face with both hands. There’s a knock on the door and Aaron looks at Andrew for confirmation before telling whoever it is to come in. 

Nicky enters the room with a small supportive smile. 

“Are they still out there?” Aaron asked. 

Andrew gets up to look outside his window and sure enough, there’s a bunch of people with cameras just camped out in their front yard. 

“Ugh,” Nicky sighed. “Can they go away?” 

“I thought you’d like all the attention,” Andrew commented. 

“Usually,” Nicky admitted. “But they’re blocking my car right now and I want to leave.” 

“Neil said this would happen. He said it would get crazy.” Andrew fumed for a second. “Celebrities might have to put up with this shit but I don’t.” 

He pushed away from the window ignoring his brother and cousin and told him to wait. He marched right to the front door. As soon as he opened it the swarm raced to get to him. 

Kathy Ferdinand was quick. How the fuck did she get to South Carolina so fast? 

“Andrew!” She called out for him. “Tell us about the time you spent with Neil Josten! We only want the truth.” 

Kathy shoved a microphone right in Andrew’s face and he was an opportunist at heart. 

“You don’t want the truth,” Andrew bit. “You want a story. You want views. You take a good person and you warp them into your own image. You don’t care if he has feelings. You build him up and you make him a star just so you can be the ones to knock him down. Just so you can be the ones to break the story first. You set him up for his demise. Screw all of you. Neil Josten is just one example. He’s living a dream life, and all you people do is try and destroy it. He can’t have one thing without you ruining it. Can’t have freedom, privacy...honestly. So, congratulations. You have your perfect celebrity. But you’ve ridden him of his soul and who he really is as a person. You should all be ashamed of yourselves.” 

Kathy looked like she really heard Andrew’s words; like she wasn’t just a shark looking for gossip, like she almost agreed with what Andrew was saying. But then she just turned to her cameraman and asked if he got all that. Andrew wanted to hit her. She turned back to Andrew, “One last question. Who do you think Neil Josten is?” 

Andrew was faintly aware of his brother and cousin at his back. He begged himself to stay strong. No tears for Neil Josten. He answered honestly, “Who’s Neil Josten? I don’t know. The star you’re all so obsessed with? I promise you, I’ve never met him.” 

***

Neil tried so very hard to avoid Matt and Dan’s glares. Dan paused the television as Andrew finished saying he would never want to meet Neil Josten. 

“Wow,” Matt said. “Didn’t you say you liked him because he was so honest?” 

“Yeah.” 

Matt scoffed, “Well good work, Neil. You got him to lie for you.” 

“I didn’t have a choice,” Neil insisted. 

“There’s always a choice!” Matt yelled. “I’m done here.” 

“Where are you going?” Neil stood up. Dan gave him a pitying glance.

“To find my best friend,” Matt said. “Because this isn’t him. Come find me when you get your shit together.” 

Matt walked out. Dan patted him on the shoulder, “He’ll come around.” 

“I fucked up, Dan.” 

“I know. Only you can fix it, Neil. What do  _ you _ want to do? Forget Stuart and what he and everyone else wants you to do. What do you want in life? Allison’s living her truest life, why can’t you?” 

Neil didn’t exactly have an answer. Dan gave him one last hug and then left, most likely to find Matt. 

Neil didn’t want Andrew to lie to him. The movie was supposed to be a big deal to Neil but lately, it just seemed like another thing he had to do. Matt and Dan were right. This wasn’t who he was. He was going to fix this. 

He got in his car and went straight to the movie set. It wasn’t hard to find Ichirou Moriyama in the crowd. He was sitting in the director’s chair barking orders at everyone. When Neil got in his line of vision, the man perked up. 

“Ah! Neil! Good news! Rehearsals start on Monday.” 

“You know, I’m actually not available,” Neil said. 

“No problem. We’ll change the date.” 

“No,” Neil insisted. “I’m here to tell you that I’m out. Thanks for the offer but if I have to lie to be deemed worthy to be in this then I want no part of it.” 

Neil nodded his end once before turning around to leave, not giving Moriyama a chance to even speak. This was good. Neil was going to start doing things for himself for once. He drove himself back to the house to find Stuart. 

“What’s this I hear about you quitting the movie?” Stuart demanded to know as soon as he saw Neil. 

“Just that,” Neil said. “I quit the movie.” 

“That’s not your decision to make,” Stuart said. 

“Yes. It is. It’s my life so it’s my decision. I don’t want to do the movie so I’m not doing it. And while we’re at it, you’re fired.” 

“What?” Stuart asked in disbelief. 

“You’re fired,” Neil stated. “I would appreciate it if you could maybe just be my uncle instead of my manager from now on.” 

Stuart stood there, jaw dropped. Neil figured he probably had to give him a moment so he excused him. He called up Allison to see if she could pull him one last favor before she went on her vacation. 

***

Andrew posed in the hideous suit for Aaron, Nicky, and Katelyn. Nicky had seen this post where these twins would try on outfits so they could see what they’d look like wearing stuff. Andrew thought that was what mirrors were for but apparently, he was wrong. 

“Hmmm. I don’t like it,” Katelyn said. 

“Okay,” Nicky said. “But imagine it on Aaron.” 

Andrew glared. 

“Just try on the next suit.” Nicky ushered him out of the room. Andrew tried to find some control as he changed into the next suit. He wasn’t going to the dance. There was no point. He didn’t want to be around a bunch of people who thought he was a liar. 

Andrew came back into the room wearing the next suit. This one was a disgusting powder blue. Aaron was missing but no one noticed he had come back so he overheard Katelyn and Nicky speaking. 

“So what was it like having all those reporters on your lawn?” Katelyn asked. 

“Exciting,” Nicky said. “But everyone needs their privacy you know?” 

“Oh for sure,” Katelyn agreed. “We all saw your cousin on TV. He looked crazy. So weird that he would make up a story like that about meeting Neil Josten. Kind of pathetic.” 

Aaron walked in as soon as she said that. “ _ Katelyn _ .” 

Katelyn turned to see Andrew in the doorway. “Oops.” 

Andrew stormed out the back door. He wasn’t a liar. Neil Josten was the liar. He didn’t care if Katelyn didn’t believe his story. He didn’t care. He repeated that mantra about one hundred times in his head before Aaron found him. 

“Andrew.” 

“What?” 

“I told Katelyn to go home,” Aaron offered. 

“I don’t care.” 

“Come to the dance with me. It’s not fair that Nicky gets to dress me up but not you.” 

“I don’t want to go,” Andrew said. 

“I want you to come. Come to the dance with me, Andrew.” 

“Why?” 

“Because,” Aaron said it as though that was enough. “Nicky has a plain black suit you could wear. No colors.” 

Andrew huffed. “Promise?”

“Promise.” 

Andrew let Nicky fix him up. Aaron was true to his word and Andrew was in a plain black suit. Aaron had on a midnight blue suit that only looked blue if the lighting was right. Andrew hoped that the dance was dark and he wouldn’t have to see a speck of blue ever again. 

Nicky drove them to the dance and made a scene outside telling them how much he loved them. Hopefully, Andrew’s classmates would talk about that instead of his great television debut. Andrew hesitated once they got to the doorway of the gym where the dance was being held. 

“You look good,” Aaron said. 

“I look like you,” Andrew pointed out. 

“I know. Which is how I know you look good.” 

Andrew rolled his eyes. They entered the dance and there were streamers and lights everywhere. It looked like how Andrew’s nightmares looked. Aaron was pulled one direction and Andrew didn’t follow. He tried to scope out the snack table but his search was interrupted when the lights suddenly changed and the band stopped playing. 

He heard cheering before he saw him. A familiar voice spoke into the microphone, “Andrew Minyard?” 

All his classmates turned toward him. Aaron gave him a look as if he was asking if he should go on stage and beat Neil Josten to the ground. Andrew would have loved to see Aaron try but he just shook his head and glared at the man on the stage. 

Neil Josten had on a simple black suit much like the one Andrew was wearing. He looked less like Neil Josten and more like Neil. Andrew moved forward to get a better look and the crowd parted for him. 

“There are some things I forgot to say to you in California,” Neil said. 

Neil motioned for the new band that was on stage to start playing. Neil Josten’s voice was just as Andrew remembered. Soft and smooth, and this time it was just for Andrew. 

**_Can't blame you_ **

**_For thinking that you never really knew me at all_ **

**_I tried to deny you_ **

**_But nothing ever made me feel so wrong_ **

**_I thought I was protecting you_ **

**_From everything that I go through_ **

**_But I know that we got lost along the way_ **

Andrew’s heart felt full. He tried to focus solely on the words Neil was singing. He thought he was doing a pretty good poker face right now for all his classmates. 

**_Here I am with all my heart_ **

**_I hope you understand_ **

**_I know I let you down_ **

**_But I'm never gonna make that mistake again_ **

Neil stepped off the stage and began walking closer to Andrew. He stood about a foot away and was singing straight to Andrew. Andrew was too aware of the people surrounding them. Neil moved forward and took Andrew’s hand in his. He held it up to his heart so Andrew could feel that Neil Josten had a heartbeat. He was alive and he was singing to Andrew and trying to apologize. 

**_You brought me closer to who I really am_ **

**_Come take my hand_ **

**_I want the world to see what you mean to me_ **

**_What you mean to me_ **

**_Just know that I'm sorry_ **

**_I never wanted to make you feel so small_ **

**_Our story is just beginning_ **

**_We'll let the truth break down these walls, oh yeah_ **

**_And every time I think of you_ **

**_I think of how you pushed me through_ **

**_And showed me how much better I could be_ **

**_Here I am with all my heart_ **

**_I hope you…_ **

Neil held Andrew’s hand tighter as he breathed out the last line. He looked at Andrew with those big stupid blue eyes and suddenly Andrew was reminded of why this all happened in the first place. Neil Josten was a liar. He strung Andrew along and then ripped his heart out on the sandy California beach. 

“What did you think?” Andrew asked. “That you could just come here and sing me a song and everything would be okay?” 

“Um,” Neil said. “Yes?” 

Andrew raised his eyebrows and gave Neil a look that said ‘are you fucking kidding me?’ 

“No!” Neil corrected. “I mean no.” 

“Which one is it?” 

Neil was flustered. “I just wanted to say I was sorry. And that I was wrong. About everything.” 

“You’re a little late,” Andrew scolded. “Everyone here thinks I’m a liar. They think I made everything up.” 

“I know. I know, I - “ Neil was cut off. Kathy Ferdinand and her crew barged into the dance. They crowded around Andrew and Neil. Andrew prepared himself for the worst. In the end, Neil was still Neil Josten, a big star celebrity, and Andrew would always be a nobody. 

Kathy Ferdinand pushed her microphone into Neil’s face. Neil seemed to be contemplative before he grabbed the mic and addressed the camera directly. 

“I lied about knowing Andrew Minyard. The truth is I know Andrew Minyard. I know that he’s stubborn, and petty, and doesn’t know how to read maps. I know that he’s the only person who’s ever seen me as just ‘Neil’ and isn’t afraid to call me out when I’m being an idiot. I know that he’s honest and fiercely loyal and when he makes a promise, he keeps it. He’s protective and intelligent, and the kind of person you can spend forty-eight hours with and hope you’re worthy of spending forty-eight more with.” 

Neil took a breath and turned to face Andrew directly. He dropped the mic to his side but Andrew was sure Kathy would find a way to get the audio. “The truth is I’m absolutely crazy about Andrew Minyard. The truth is I’m hoping that he knows that I am so, so sorry that I hurt him and that I will never do anything like that again. The truth is I’ll understand completely if he doesn’t want to give me a second chance even though I would really like one. The truth is I hope he forgives me.” 

Andrew internalized. He looked toward his brother who was looking at him with wide eyes. He saw classmates who he didn’t even know looking on in disbelief, as though they couldn’t believe something like this could ever happen to Andrew Minyard. Quiet and broody Andrew Minyard. If he was being completely honest, Andrew couldn’t believe it either. As usual, it was Aaron that helped him make his decision. 

There was a chance that forgiving Neil Josten would land him with further heartbreak down the road. But Aaron would always be on his side. 

Neil’s face slowly started to fall and crumble the longer Andrew went without saying anything. Andrew decided to put him out of his misery and nodded. 

“I have rules,” Andrew said. 

“I wouldn’t expect anything less,” Neil smiled. 

The crowd cheesily awed and Andrew saw Aaron give him a double thumbs up. Nicky would be relentless when he found out. 

Neil’s smile dropped as he glared over Andrew’s shoulder at Kathy Ferdinand. She looked to be happy for the two but Neil wasn’t having it. “Go away,” he ordered. 

“Oh, shit, right,” Kathy was frazzled. 

“Now. Get out of here,” Neil shooed them away. 

Once the cameras were gone the regular band came back on stage and for the most part everyone went back to dancing. A few people were lingering too close for Andrew’s liking but he did his best to ignore them. Neil was still smirking down at him and Andrew wanted to kiss it off his face. He leaned up on his tippy toes but before he could connect his mouth with Neil’s he heard someone clearing their throat beside them. Neil looked over like he had seen a ghost. 

“I didn’t realize you were a twin.” 

Andrew saw Aaron standing there with his arms crossed and nodding his head towards Neil. 

“Fine,” Andrew rolled his eyes. “Neil, this is my brother Aaron. Aaron, this is Neil Josten.” 

“Hi,” Aaron was starstruck. 

“Hi,” Neil said. Aaron stood there frozen and didn’t offer anything else. Neil continued, “Aaron? Would it be alright if I danced with your brother for a bit?” 

“What?” Aaron asked. “Oh. OH! Yes. Dance away. I’ll be, um, somewhere else.” 

Aaron turned around but crashed right into Neil’s best friend. Matt Boyd, who Andrew hadn’t even realized had been there the whole time was trailed by two long legged females. Allison Reynolds and Dan Wilds.

Matt clapped Aaron on the shoulder and then addressed Neil, “Renee is in the car. We’re gonna take Aaron and go break the news to Nicky.” 

“You go do that,” Neil laughed. 

Aaron was in his own heaven as he walked out of the dance with three big name celebrities. Andrew especially enjoyed Katelyn’s shell-shocked look and Aaron didn’t even acknowledge her existence as he left. 

“You didn’t have to come all the way to South Carolina for this,” Andrew felt the need to say. 

“I did,” Neil said. “It’s super lame to ask someone out over the phone.” 

Neil Josten was going to be the death of Andrew. 

“So...will you? Will you go out on a date with me?” Neil asked. 

Andrew considered it. “Will I have to wear a disguise?” 

“No.”

“Will  _ you? _ ”

“Nope,” Neil promised. 

“Then, yes,” Andrew said. “I will go on a date with you, Neil Josten.”

Neil smiled. “Oh! Before I forget. I have a gift for you.” 

“Oh, really?” Andrew was never above gifts. 

Neil fished out a pair of all black sunglasses from his pocket. The same sunglasses Andrew had joked about stealing in the car. On one side of the temples in silver sharpie was Neil Josten’s squiggly and barely legible signature. 

“I’m going to sell these online,” Andrew declared. “Then I’ll be the one that’s too good for you.” 

“You’ll always be too good for me,” Neil was dead serious. 

Andrew put the sunglasses on his face. Mostly to hide any emotion that may have been showing through his own eyes. Neil saw right through him but didn’t comment. He put his own sunglasses on and held out his hands for Andrew to take. 

When Andrew got home he was going to have a lot of explaining to do. He hoped that Aaron and Nicky were behaving themselves in front of Neil's friends but for some reason highly doubted that. Betsy would probably want to know more about California and what this now meant for Andrew. Not to mention what dating Neil Josten would do to his life. He’d have to say good-bye to privacy. 

There was a lot for Andrew to think about and prepare for. But right now, the music was loud and fast, and Neil was holding his hands. Neil had them swaying far too slow for the speed of the music but Andrew didn’t care. He had Neil, and he had his family back home. For now, this was enough. 

Andrew felt settled. And more importantly, Andrew felt happy. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> <3


End file.
